Decline of

Language
By Genevieve, Adie, Claire, and Anna
Diversity
 Our Question and Answer
Question: How has
neocolonialism in
education contributed to
the decline of language
diversity and the alienation
of native identities?
Answer:
Within the American education system, the primary use of
english as a tool of assimilation has led to a decline in language
diversity. Loss of language diversity correlates directly with loss
of cultural identity as language plays a central role in one’s
perception of the world. American government policy and an
imperialist worldview have played a major role in this. The
dominance of the English language in modern society has served
as a form of alienation to non-English speakers who chose to
maintain their cultural identity. Furthermore, English has been
made a requirement of success in modern society and these
values have been enforced through the education systems,
which alienates native identities.
2
Definitions

3
English is not
the Only
Language
4
 7,000
Total number of languages in the world.
The number is decreasing every week.

5
 × Every 14 days, a language
dies.

× Over half the world’s

languages are endangered.

× By some estimates ½ of the

world’s languages will be
gone in the next 100 years.

(Boroditsky)
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Language Changes Perception
Language: The Inut people and their exclusion from climate change: their
language doesn’t have words for concepts like “solar power”
(Poppick).

Language Affects: Our Personal Treasure Maps

● Concepts of time

● Linguistic Tricks (counting)

● Visual World

● Interpretation of Words

● Interpretation of Events

(Boroditsky)
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 Solar panels, a flat piece resembling a
window/mirror placed on the top of a building in
order to collect electricity to power the house

Turbines controlled by the wind. Creating

electricity energy to run engines, tools and
light bulbs.

Poppick
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The language Binary
Nieto
Western Language infultraits the east

中国 vs China

East vs West Good vs Bad

Frontier vs City Wild vs Civil

Generalizing millions of identities to two opposites

“I talk to you from the East but you reply from the West”(Talhouk). Campaign
to convince people to revitalize and fight to preserve their language and
culture.

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Language is Identity
● Killing a language is like killing its nation
(Talhouk).

● Forget one’s culture, memories, and thoughts

(Talhouk)

● Give up all of this to be modern (Talhouk)

● Old languages don’t satisfy today’s needs

“If you can put a name to your
(Talhouk) feelings, you’ve mastered them, if you
can name the world around you
● Creative form of expression (Talhouk) means a sense of belonging.”

-Daniel Coleman
● “Without our language we have nothing. The
language is what makes us who we are as an 10
Indian people.” (Suina)
Language is Culture
Language: “It defines who we are as a
people.” -To'hajiilee student
Language is empowering: Language plays a
“key role. Brings everything together, how
we explain certain things.”
Dominant society:
Language:
“To speak means to … assume a
culture, to support the wieght of a
culture.” David Gonzales Nieto
● Language serves as a connection to one’s culture, land,
tradition. (Suina)
● Shift in language for New Mexico Pueblo Indians could result
in loss of their oral based cultures (Suina)
● The Pueblo pass down of traditions, beliefs, and values,
“forms of social organization, orientations” orally from
generation to generation. (Suina)
● Economy doesn’t support traditional subsistence farming and
hunter gathering.
● “…glamorized, fast paced, and seemingly easy life of
mainstream society continues to seep into and saturate the
lives of every generation in the Pueblo.” (Suina)
Education
Tight connection between assimilating natives and educating them:
Many schools “... simply
● To create a “human specimen that embraced christianity, practiced industrial pursuits
ignored or minimized
(especially agriculture), espoused the tenets of civil society and with the passage of
generations reflected an increasingly homogenous national ethos” (Carrol). native culture, planting
seeds of doubt about its
credibility.” (Suina)
● Dominant languages taught in school. English only rule: not one word in another
language.

Punishments for speaking non-English languages:

● Soap in mouth if word is said from Native language.

● “We got accustomed to speaking only English because it was everywhere and it
wasn’t cool to speak Indian. To speak it was to be poor and backwards.” (Suina)

Schools served as way to kill Native American languages and cultures:

● 75% of New Mexican Native American students under New Mexico Department of
Education’s public school were part of districts where Non-Indians dominated with no 12
conception of Native American culture. (Suina)
Education “The school room was
● Removed indigenous people form “degrading influences of traditional life” (Carrol). the furnace where
children of inferior
● Hierarchy of success- Most assimilated=members of society (Carrol).
races would have an
opportunity to observe
and replicate the
● Assimilation through off-reservation schools
attitudes and
behaviours of the
Schools reflect the values of their society without realizing it: dominant majority.”
● Scientific racism- Social Darwinism

● Trying to get Natives to be self-sufficient and apart of modern industrial society

(Carrol).

● “Anglo centric model relied heavily on institutionalization... While native approach

was completely structured and familial” (Carrol).

● Vocational emphasis: Imperial attitude wrapped in humanitarianism front (Carrol). 13

 Language
is a
Weapon
Neocolonialism through education is language
genocide

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Policy
No Child Left Behind Act
2001
× Pros: every teacher must
have a bachelor's degree
× Cons: For native teachers
it is harder to teach the
language
× Less immersion
× Assessments must be in
English
Every Student Succeeds Act:
× More english as a second language
× Language assessments must be
provided in multiple languages
× Newamerica.org
Ester Martinez Native
American Preservation Act
● 2006
● Funding for education
(Hanna)
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NALA- Native American Grant Peace Policy:
Languages Act
× Reservations assigned
× Work must be done to religious
preserve Native denominations
Languages responsible for
education and
× Grants money assimilation.
towards the cause for
things like bilingual
schools and
immersion programs

(Klug)

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Interesting Facts
× Tennessee and
× United states doesn't
Arizona have no other
have an official languages in public
language school

× 30 States English is
× California,
their official language
Massachusetts, and
Arkansas recently got
× Illinois has American rid of no bilingual
as their official education
language for 45 years
(Hanna)

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Neocolonialism in
Education

Education is used as a
weapon and tool of
assimilation.
In America the result was the
Native American Boarding
Schools.
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The motive behind these institutions was that
“ ..all the Indian there is in the race should be
dead. Kill the Indian in him, and save the
man…” (Pratt).
Browning Ruling: Schools were Conditions
located across the country from ● Illness
○ Unsanitary, overcrowded
the children’s home to reduce
● Dangers
runaways. ○ Injuries from running away
(Peterson) and machinery
● Abuse
Children were stripped of ○ Beatings, jail like cells,
getting dragged behind
their names, clothing, and cars, and techniques meant
language, their hair was cut and to humiliate
they were forbidden from
expressing anything related to
their cultural identity including
language. (unspoken)
 Results

● Trauma for whole generations

● Loss of languages
● Cultural confusion
● Mental health issues
● Cycle of financial troubles
(Houska)
If U.S. government had not interfered, a to'hajiilee
student expresses, her public school would be similar
“but language would be more incorporated in our daily
lives and in our current generation.”

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Cultural Isolation
The Inut people’s entire lives are based on the
ESSA allows land (Poppick)
students to be They are losing their land to climate change,
something they don't have a word for (Poppick).
tested in Native
languages so ● English is made necessary for
that even the success through neocolonialism
smartest kids (Carrol).
who only know
their smarts in “As the state systematically
● English is used for major
another research, for negotiation,
stripped Native communities of government policy, etc
language can social and political (Boroditsky).
still be self-determination it
considered consistently assigned ‘village ● Previous generations of
“smart.” Alaska’ the neocolonial status To'hajiilee Native Americans that
of a problem to be solved” only speak Pueblo language are
(Howk). isolated 23
 Language
is Vital
● Language changes how we see
and interpret the world

● Language is essential to identity

● Language carries cultural weight
● Language changes relationship
with the land
“It defines who we are as a
people.” -Tohajiilee student
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 ● Immersion schools fight
language exclusion with special
keyboards like keyboards with
the Cherokee language
● Whichita a dying language
1990: Yurok has 6 fluent speakers
2013: 17 fluent speakers via school
300 basic speakers
60 intermediate
37 advanced

● Hard to start due to funding and

pre-existing education policy

Eveleth

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Our Audience
× Austin High school
students, reach them by
× Allowed Austin High
creating mural in very
students to contribute
well trafficked place (on
a translation for home
Spanish portable).
in their language.

× Why? The education

× Remind all students
system in America favors
that their language is a
conforming to popular
part of their identity
anglo-american culture.
and that it is valued

× Inform others about

the decline in
language diversity
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We used public art to reach our audience. Our mural is
currently being painted.

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 Thanks!
Any questions?
If anyone has a translation for the word home
in their language we would love it if you would
fill out this google form so we can add it to our
mural!
https://goo.gl/forms/M8IZvrGqwwuKJIHs2

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